49ers shopping Alex Smith

The 49ers aren’t in the market for a starting quarterback, but they are hoping there’s a market for their ex-starter, Alex Smith.

With that in mind, the early pre-draft buzz is encouraging for San Francisco: Unlike last year, quarterback-needy NFL teams might not find immediate answers to their problems in this year’s draft.

The QB-starved Chiefs have the first pick and Kansas City general manager John Dorsey recently said he didn’t see a quarterback who was an obvious first-rounder, let alone worthy of being a No. 1 overall selection.

The lack of elite talent at the top – coupled with a weak free-agent quarterback class – inspires an obvious question: Alex Smith, anyone?

“There is no quarterback where personnel guys can definitely say, ‘He’s a first-round pick,’ ” Dorsey said to the Kansas City Star. “There were so many inconsistencies in the collective group. There was not one guy that stood up and said, ‘I’m the guy in the position this year.’ There really wasn’t one clear-cut guy.”

That assessment suggests the 49ers should find a team such as the Chiefs, Browns or Cardinals willing to trade for Smith, who led the NFL in completion percentage and ranked third in passer rating when he was supplanted by Colin Kaepernick in November. Those trade discussions figure to intensify this week at the NFL combine in Indianapolis, where Jim Harbaugh and general manager Trent Baalke will meet with the media Thursday.

In addition to exploring trades, Harbaugh and Baalke will be interviewing and examining prospects, who will begin participating in drills Saturday.

Beyond the lack of premier passers, draft gurus have labeled this year’s class weak at the top, but teeming with depth in the early rounds. That is heartening news for the 49ers, who don’t pick until No. 31 overall, but will have at least four picks in the first three rounds. The Niners are expected to have 14 draft picks, including three yet-to-be-announced compensatory selections.

NFL Network draft guru Mike Mayock believes this year’s class could have the most depth in a decade.

“I wouldn’t want a top 10 pick this year – I think the fifth pick in the draft and the 25th pick in this draft are very similar,” said Mayock, later adding, “I think a lot of teams are going to look to move down, but I’m not sure there are a lot of teams looking to go come up. I think most of the value in this draft is later.”

CBS Sports analyst Rob Rang says the draft is particularly loaded with defensive linemen, perhaps the top priority for the 49ers entering the offseason.

All-Pro defensive tackle Justin Smith will turn 34 in September and the defense struggled after he sustained a torn triceps tendon in mid-December, allowing an average of 28.8 points in their final five games. Starting nose guard Isaac Sopoaga and his backup, Ricky Jean Francois, are both pending free agents.

The 49ers haven’t drafted a pure defensive lineman in the first six rounds since they selected Kentwan Balmer in the first round in 2008.